Friend in Need
by YappiChick
Summary: Sheppard travels with Teyla to Athos on the Athosian Day of Mourning.


Title: Friend In Need  
Author: YappiChick  
Disclaimer: Nope, not mine.   
Summary: John accompanies Teyla to Athos on the Athosian Day of Mourning.  
Category: JT friendship  
Feedback: You betcha!

John swung his banto sticks at a phantom opponent. Normally, Teyla and he met on Thursday mornings, when she would routinely kicked his butt. He reached back and rubbed his backside. Maybe it was a good thing she hadn't showed up yet, he thought.

Fifteen minutes later, he put down his sticks and tried to radio her. Surely if something had come up, she would let him know. After trying to contact her three times, he left the gym, looking for Teyla.

He wasn't panicked, he told himself for the fifth time since he left the gym to go to her quarters, it was just uncharacteristic for her not to be there. It was just something a concerned friend would do, looking out for another. Surely he'd do the same for Ronan.

Once he stood outside her door, he paused. Was he overreacting? Nah, he thought. If he was late for an appointment with Elizabeth, she would have McKay looking around for him after five minutes.

He activated the door chime. After a couple of moments, the door opened; inside was a sight he wasn't expecting to see. Teyla was not wearing her usual workout outfit or any garment he had ever seen her wear before.

Instead, she was wearing a long, flowing white dress. It was far more elaborate than any of the clothes Sheppard had seen the other Athosians wear. Lace and beads were sewn on the outfit in an intricate design. Yet, despite its beauty, there was something seemingly tragic about it. Her hair was pulled back in a beautiful bun and a veil was covering her face. What was more surprising to Sheppard was the fact she was not alone.

Halling and several other Athosians stood in her room, obviously finishing the final touches of Teyla's outfit. "Good morning, Colonel," she greeted evenly.

"Teyla," he returned, confusion in his voice. "Did you forget to send me a wedding invitation?"

"I'm afraid you couldn't be more incorrect in your assessment, Colonel Sheppard. Teyla is preparing for the Athosian Day of Mourning," Halling answered, sadness in his voice. To Teyla, "We must hurry if you are to be there on time."

Sheppard had a dozen questions come to mind. What was this Day of Mourning? Why didn't he know about it? Was that a sense of relief that she wasn't getting married? What came out was "You're going to the mainland?"

For the first time since he walked through the door, Teyla met his gaze. "No, John, I must travel to Athos."

"Athos?" he repeated back, disbelief in his voice. "We've been back there before; you know there is nothing there but rubble."

She frowned back slightly, not wanting to be reminded of the state of her former home.

"Nevertheless, I must go there. I will be back before sunset tonight."

"And Elizabeth already approved of this?" he asked. He hated being out of the loop when it came to members of his team.

She nodded. "Yes, Dr. Weir approved my request several weeks ago. I explained to her that this is an annual ritual--"

"How come I didn't know about this last year then?" demanded Sheppard.

Teyla forced a small smile, trying not to get annoyed at his constant questions. "You were on Earth this time last year," she reminded him. "When I explained my situation to him last year, Major Lorne also approved my request to travel to Athos, Colonel. He trusted the fact that I am fully capable of looking out for myself."

If her intention was to embarrass him about his overprotection, it failed. Sheppard couldn't care less what any other member of the expedition allowed her to do; he wasn't going to let her go off world unless someone was there with a gun, bottom line. He could hardly picture Halling using one of their P-90s to make sure everyone was safe. "Well, I'm sorry if I'm acting like a mother hen--"

"Mother hen?" Teyla asked.

"Teyla," Halling interrupted, before Sheppard had time to answer, "the time has come."

"Let me go with you. I can keep a lookout for the Wraith. You hardly look like you're ready for combat," he argued.

"No! Teyla must go on this journey alone. As the leader of her people, this is something she must bare on her own," Halling insisted. He put his hand on Teyla's arm, leading her out of the room.

John stood in front of him. "Alone? You mean none of you are going with her? That's it, I'm going."

Teyla paused before exiting out of the room. "Colonel, this is a tradition handed down for many generations. There are rituals that I must perform in solitude. I assure you, I will be fine."

"Look," Sheppard said, realizing the only way he was getting through that gate was compromising, "I won't follow you. You won't even know that I'm there. I'm not comfortable with any member of my team going on their own off Atlantis, traditions or not."

Halling and Teyla exchanged a glance. After a tense moment, she nodded. "You may go along, Colonel, but you must remain at the gate."

"She should warn you, Colonel Sheppard, when she leaves this room, she will no longer be able to speak to you until the rituals have been performed. To do so would be an insult to those who have died before her," Halling said.

Sheppard shrugged, glad that he was going to be allowed to go without having to pull rank. "It's not the first time a woman has given me the silent treatment. I'll go get my stuff and meet you in the control room, ok?"

After seeing her nod, Sheppard went down the corridor, sprinting. Somehow, he couldn't imagine Halling being pleased if Teyla was any further delayed than she already was. Five minutes later, fully armed with his standard P-90, he approached the control room.

Teyla and her fellow Athosians stood at the gate. When Teyla saw Sheppard, she nodded towards Elizabeth, waiting at her usual spot on the balcony. Once the gate was activated, she turned towards Halling, grabbing his shoulders. They leaned forward, touching their foreheads together. Nodding slightly towards Weir, she stepped through the gate. Wordlessly, Sheppard followed her.

When he saw Athos in front of him, it seemed as though the planet knew what day it was. The sky was covered with dark clouds; the winds whistled a bone-chilling tune. Sheppard wished he had the foresight of bringing a jacket with him.

Five feet from the gate, he stopped as per Teyla's wishes. She stopped walking to turn around and nod thankfully at him.

After several hours had passed, Sheppard's task, in his mind, had been downgraded from "I have to protect a member of my team!" to "Why am I not practicing my golf swing on the east pier?" He really needed to start packing something to do. Maybe he could dial the gate and see if McKay could send over his electronic Sudoko.

Finally, coming from behind some trees to the east, Teyla approached him. Sheppard had no way of knowing if her vow of silence was over, so he nodded in her direction.

Sadly smiling, she moved her head in invitation for her to follow her. John picked up his gun and quickly followed her.

No words were spoken as they walked for a few kilometers. Finally, they approached a rock face. Sheppard inwardly groaned. Rock climbing had never been one of his favorite activities on earth. Looking up, he calculated the top was about fifteen meters high. Unfortunately, there was no time for him to try to back out; Teyla was nearly a third of the way up.

Once they scaled the small cliff, Teyla faced left. Sheppard didn't know what exactly what he was looking at, only that it was beautiful. In the valley that was several kilometers west of them, was a large, circle mural-like image on the ground. The image itself wasn't anything that he could easily identify, but it obviously held some significance to the Athosians. Even from this distance, he could see different colors of stone, greens, blues, browns, reds, and ambers.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Teyla bowing her head. Softly, she began chanted, what Sheppard assumed, was a prayer to the Ancients. Suddenly embarrassed, he wondered why he insisted on going again. Looking down at his feet, he couldn't help but to notice what a nice voice Teyla had. Exotic, much like her speaking voice, yet comforting.

After her chanting ended, she walked extremely close to the edge of the cliff, taking off the veil that covered her face and released it over the edge. Sheppard watched as the transparent fabric flew away, the wind carrying it off in the distance. Slowly she reached behind her and began to untie the ribbon that held up her dress.

He opened his mouth to remind her that he was still there, but before his could say anything, she turned to him and shot a warning glare. Taking heed, he closed his mouth, but turned slightly away. There was no way he was going to watch Teyla strip in front of him. Not overtly anyway.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as she pulled down the straps from her shoulders. A combination of relief and disappointment flooded Sheppard when he realized she was wearing another outfit underneath the dress. After she completely removed her garment, she released it over the edge like the veil.

She motioned for John to join her. Together they watched the dress float down to the ground. Once it had landed, Teyla turned to him. "That is the Remembrance Field for all the Athosians who died before me," she explained, referring to the colorful land below them. "Every year, the leader of my people must go there and mourn for those who no longer live. I am the twenty-fifth generation to continue this tradition. A small stone about the size of your fist represents every person. Each color represents a different leader."

To make a mural that size, Sheppard figured there must be hundreds of thousands of stones out there. He looked out to the field before him, in the middle was a large block of red. "The color in the middle, let me guess, all those people died by the Wraith?"

She nodded sadly. "It is the largest culling that my people had ever experienced. Over ten thousand died. I cannot imagine the burden of laying those stones that year. I have been fortunate that my collection to the field has been very small comparatively to those who came before me." A moment of silence passed.

She hesitated before speaking. "I was considering placing a stone for Aiden."

His face hardened. "We still don't know what happened to him," he said tersely. She knew that the loss of his friend was still hard for him to address.

"I know," she said softly. "That is why I did not to so. But, sometimes it is necessary to put closure on certain people in our life."

He shook his head. "I'm not ready to give up on him."

Despite the sadness of the day, a faint smile passed over her lips. John Sheppard would never give up hope on any of the members of his team. His dedication to his friends was something that always impressed Teyla. "Come. It is time for us to return to Atlantis."

She led the way climbing down the face of the rock. When they got to the bottom, John noticed the dress on the ground. "Aren't you going to pick that up?" he asked as she continued making her way to the gate.

"It is the final rite. The release of the clothing is to symbolize the letting go of the sadness for the fallen ones," she explained. "Now, we are able to look back at those who have died without mourning, but celebration for the person's life."

"But white? On Earth, we mourn by wearing black."

"So many of my people have died at the hands of the Wraith. The white clothes represent the white light of the culling beam. For most, it was the last thing they ever saw," she said softly. "It is a solemn reminder to never let our guard down against such an enemy."

He nodded slightly, following her through the trees. As they continued their journey back to Atlantis, he wondered how many stones had been added since Teyla had been leader of her people. She had said her contribution had been small, but did that mean dozens? Hundreds? Sheppard knew the pain of losing those who were under his command. Since his time at Atlantis, sending condolences to the family of fallen comrades had become a more frequent part of his job description.

When they were nearly back to the gate, Teyla turned to him. "Do you fear dying, Colonel?"

"Dying? No, not really," he answered swiftly. "What about you?"

A small frown crossed Teyla's face as they continued walking. "I do not fear dying. Every Athosian is told about the reality of death at a very early age." She thought for a few seconds. "I suppose it is not death itself I fear, but rather, the knowledge that someday there will be no one who will remember anyone of my people, including myself. It is very...humbling to recognize that one day I will only be known as nothing more than one more stone in Remembrance Field." She smiled self-consciously. "Forgive me, Colonel. I have a tendency to be rather morose on this day."

"You don't have anything to worry about. There's no way you could ever be forgotten. You are in so many of our reports that everyone at Stargate Command practically knows you," he said assuringly.

She smiled softly, appreciating the effort. Sometimes it seemed that the colonel's perspective was purposefully innocent to the negative things around him. Instead of looking at the deeper level of issues, he was more comfortable taking things at face value. "That is certainly reassuring. Perhaps that is why Colonel Caldwell has no problem with giving me orders like I am one of his military officers."

"Nah, that's just because he is your run-of-the-mill colonel who likes to boss people around," he shot back.

"It seems as though most of the people in your military are that way," she observed. "Sergeant Bates...Colonel Sumner."

He couldn't suppress the feeling of guilt he always felt when someone brought up his former CO's name. It was the first time he had ever intentionally killed someone who was fighting on the same side that he was on and it still haunted his dreams. Pushing down those feelings, he forced himself to answer as normally as possible. "Yup, most of the military are filled with people like the two of them."

Teyla felt guilty for bringing up a painful topic. "You should know that I placed a stone for Colonel Sumner on the field last year. It seemed like it was the right thing to do considering his death will the result of protecting my people," she said.

For her to have done something like that reminded Sheppard how kind she and her people were. "I'm sure he would have appreciated that."

She studied him for a few seconds. Both of them knew that the colonel would neither have liked nor been thankful for the sentiment. "You do, at least," she responded.

Sheppard watched her walk ahead of him. Not since the death of Charin had he seen Teyla this lost. Usually it was she who was in control and could assess a situation with both wisdom and compassion. It was part of what made her a successful leader. Often times, her strength, physically and emotionally, made him forget that there were times when she needed the help that she so freely gave to others.

He saw Teyla at the DHD, punching in the address to Atlantis. He frantically thought if there was something he could do to make her feel better. "Hey Teyla, when we get back home wanna watch the Super Bowl? I've been saving it for a special occasion. Let me tell you, there's nothing better to get you out of a bad mood then a good ol' game of football."

The wormhole opened. "How does watching a bunch of men tackling each other make one feel better?" she inquired.

"Well," he said slowly, thinking, "watching a football game is like watching poetry in motion. Poetry can be a beautiful thing. Beautiful things make people happy...right?"

She looked at his hopeful look in his eye, the half-smile that was trying to make her feel better, the way he was standing just a bit closer than he normally did and thought it was a beautiful sight. For the first time that day, she smiled earnestly. "I believe you are correct, Colonel."

Together, they stepped through the gate.


End file.
